What inspired you to become an architect?
To be honest, I never considered anything else, I wanted to be an architect as a child. At the time, of course, I didn’t have a clear idea of the role of the profession, but from a very early age I liked the idea of being able to develop and propose my ideas for buildings.
How would you describe your design philosophy?
I’m still searching myself. The projects happen very intuitively and I make sure that they don’t make themselves too important compared to the existing, built environment.
Can you tell us about your favorite project and why it stands out?
I couldn’t name a favorite project because each one has its own story and that is what I find so appealing about my projects. So far, they have been very different and each one is its own new challenge, the realization of which I am very satisfied with. It is also important to me that the users can accept and use it well.
What is your favorite architectural detail?
I am very interested in the effect of ceiling soffits on rooms and I think that this is sometimes underestimated. I like to show sloping ceilings in the interior or develop my own shapes. While the floor covering and walls sometimes have to be designed very functionally, the ceiling offers a lot of flexibility and can help to give a room its special character. To represent this idea, I am sharing the concept section of a renovation that I was able to realize two years ago, the Hinterhaus Restoration.
Do you have a favorite material?
I think that wood is a brilliant material and since we have a long tradition of using wood in my home region, I like to use it often. Nevertheless, I always try to offer a balanced mix of materials in the projects, especially in the interior.
What is your process for starting a new project?
I am interested in the history of a place and how it has grown or should and can continue to grow. In Vorarlberg there is good public access to old images and aerial photographs dating back to the 1930s, you can learn a lot from that. It’s always worth taking a look at the archives.
How do you balance creativity and practicality in your designs?
I think that one does not exclude the other. In the best case, both work on an equal footing. Depending on the design or concept, I sometimes give more weight to the formal aspect, and sometimes to practicality. I think you always have to weigh up what is more important in a specific case. I think a good project contains a lot of both.
What role does the surrounding environment play in your architectural projects?
A very big one. I find it exciting to work in different contexts and to develop them further. I’m less concerned with holding on to the old or historical, but rather with a logical and continuous continuation of the local, regional, and cultural conditions as an opportunity to develop special spaces and places. I never try to break with anything, but rather to work out the characteristic and qualitative peculiarities of a place, a region, etc., and translate them into the present day.
How do you approach working with clients to understand their needs and visions?
I like to invest a lot of time in discussions and joint site visits before starting work to understand the task and the location as well as possible. The better I can assess what I am working on, the more targeted I can work and the easier it is to make decisions along the way because I have a good foundation.
What architectural trends or movements do you find most inspiring?
I don’t think much of trends that flood us in mass quantities and around the world in the form of images every day and that overwhelm us. They are usually very short-lived. Architecture, on the other hand, is slow and sluggish. That’s a good thing because it is supposed to serve us for a lifetime – also from an ecological point of view, it needs to last, it needs time and it is permanent.
What advice would you give to aspiring architects?
I don’t feel in a position to give advice to others. The fields of activity of architects are so broad, the starting point so individual, that everyone has to know for themselves what feels good and right.
Featured Image Simon Moosbrugger Architekt © Studio Simon Oberhofer
